Scottish Parliament

Written Answers

Monday 7 February 2000

Scottish Executive

Agriculture

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive where in Scotland the two mammalian rendering plants approved to process specified risk material are situated.

Ross Finnie: There are two establishments in Scotland approved to render specified risk material (SRM) under the SRM Regulations 1997. These are:

  Dundas Brothers Ltd, Inverurie, Aberdeenshire

  William Forrest & Sons (Paisley) Ltd, Newarthill, Motherwell

Caledonian MacBrayne

Mr Duncan Hamilton (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-561 by Sarah Boyack on 19 August 1999, when it now expects the report into the operation of Caledonian MacBrayne Ferries on the Firth of Clyde will be published.

Sarah Boyack: The report on ferry services between Gourock and Dunoon will be published shortly.

Community Care

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is for nursing home placements in each local authority for which figures are available and what plans it has for reducing waiting times.

Iain Gray: The information requested is not available on a consistent basis. We are taking a range of initiatives which should reduce waiting times. Central to these is the drive for local agencies to work together to improve services as envisaged in Modernising Community Care: an Action Plan . Incentive funding to encourage implementation will increase from £5 million this year to £7.5 million in 2000-2001. The Joint Future Group, which I will chair, will aim to strengthen joint working.

Community Care

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether health boards are able to contribute capital funding to housing associations and local authorities to facilitate adaptations to (a) allow disabled tenants to remain in residence; (b) to alleviate future health problems of disabled tenants, or (c) where there would be an improvement in health for a disabled tenant or members of their household.

Iain Gray: Any tenant seeking an aid or adaptation to their premises should in the first instance raise the matter with their landlord.

  Health boards may, if they think fit, make payments to local authorities and housing associations for, among other matters, the provision of housing.

  Latest figures show that local authority social work departments spent £15 million on aids and adaptations in 1997-98.

  Scottish Homes issued good practice guidance last year on the provision of adaptations. The guidance is aimed at housing associations, local authorities, private landlords and others and sets a list of bodies responsible for the provision of aids or equipment for all housing sectors.

Culture

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it spends in total annually on the development and promotion of the Scots language, including grants to the Scots Language Society, Scottish National Dictionary Association, Scots Language Resource Centre and other projects.

Mr Sam Galbraith: In 1999-2000 the grants to the Scottish National Dictionary Association, the Scots Language Resource Centre and the Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue are £40,000, £23,500 and £49,000 respectively. No grant has been made to the Scots Language Society. Education Department guidelines dealing with the development and promotion of Scots do so in the context of the curriculum, and it is therefore not practicable to estimate the spending related to Scots.

Disabled Access

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will confirm that in all PFI contracts for the building of schools the needs of both disabled children and staff are given priority.

Peter Peacock: The details of such contracts are between the authorities and the contractors concerned. However, since 1985, the Building Standards (Scotland) Regulations have required that the design of most new or altered or extended buildings, including schools, take proper account of the needs of disabled people. The regulations apply irrespective of how the works are funded.

Drugs

Elaine Smith (Coatbridge and Chryston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will supplement the work of the Drug Enforcement Agency by reviewing and amending existing drug treatment programmes for addicts, such as the methadone programme, in the light of the death of 15 year old Kerry-Ann Kirk, from Coatbridge.

Angus MacKay: It is for the statutory authorities, in liaison with local Drug Action Teams, to ensure that there is an appropriate range of treatment services for drug misusers in line with the national objectives set out in Scotland’s drugs strategy. The success of methadone treatment in reducing crime, deaths, disease and drug use is well documented. In light, however, of the tragic death of Kerry-Ann Kirk, the Executive is asking all health boards to report on the steps that they have taken to ensure that, wherever practicable, methadone is taken under supervision. That includes addressing problems that may arise over weekend and holiday periods. The balance of benefit is hugely in favour of prescribing methadone, but we must ensure that its use is safe and watertight.

Education

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what financial and other assistance it intends to make available to allow high quality cycle training to be delivered and to enable local authorities to implement its guidance document Safer Routes To School .

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive provides funding to the Scottish Road Safety Campaign to enable it to develop road safety education and publicity initiatives. Following the Comprehensive Spending Review, the resources allocated for this work were increased by £1 million over the three years beginning 1999-2000. Following a review of the Scottish Cycle Training Scheme by the Scottish Road Safety Campaign, the written training materials have been revised and a new training video made. The new training pack will be issued shortly to all Road Safety Units in Scotland and its use promoted in schools throughout Scotland. The pack will assist in the delivery of high quality cycle training.

  Local authorities receive a block allocation for expenditure on a number of services. It is for each local authority to determine its expenditure programme, including provision for cycle training and Safer Routes to School schemes, in the light of its various priorities.

Education

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many schools in Scotland do not have school boards.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The latest published statistics (from May 1998) show 476 schools which were eligible to have a school board did not. 95 schools in Scotland were not eligible to have a school board.

Enterprise

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make representations to Her Majesty's Government in order to encourage growth in research and development activity in Scotland by reducing the tax burden upon it or by introducing tax relief on investment in such activity.

Henry McLeish: Scottish Executive Ministers have regular and continuing discussions with Her Majesty’s Government on matters of economic interest. They welcome the Chancellor’s announcement of a tax credit for research and development in small and medium sized enterprises in last year’s budget.

Enterprise

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why the number of new business start-ups in Scotland dropped to their lowest level in five years in the third quarter of 1999 and what plans it has to reverse this decline.

Henry McLeish: The level of new business start-ups in Scotland is determined by a range of factors, including the overall state of the Scottish and UK economies. The quarterly GDP statistics indicate that the Scottish economy experienced a modest slowdown in the rates of GDP growth over the first half of 1999, along with UK and other European economies. However, the most recent economic indicators are favourable and the latest forecasts suggest that growth in Scotland will accelerate from 2000 in line with the UK.

  We also have a number of specific initiatives in hand to increase the number of start-up businesses assisted by the enterprise network, and to improve the quality and consistency of advice and support for small businesses across Scotland. We will announce details of these improvements shortly.

Enterprise

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make a statement on the current plans for the Abbotsholm Business Park.

Henry McLeish: This is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise. I will ask the Chairman of that organisation to write to Mr Gibson.

Environment

George Lyon (Argyll and Bute) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take to ensure the protection of the environment in the light of the announcement that the Scottish NATO Pol organisation has applied to the Health and Safety Executive for a variation license to handle certain explosives at Loch Striven.

Mr John Home Robertson: The issues raised relate to a formal licensing procedure between the Naval Bases and Supply Agency of the Ministry of Defence and the Health and Safety Executive. They are therefore reserved to the UK Parliament.

Environment

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which air quality monitoring sites failed to meet the targets of four days and 35 days for particulate levels in each of the last three years and on how many days in each year each site failed to meet either of these targets.

Sarah Boyack: Air quality statistics for particulates are not available for all Scottish monitoring sites for each of the last three years. The information available is as follows:-

  Air Quality Statistics for Particulates (PM10)

  


Site 

  

Type 

  

Year 

  

Days exceedence 

  



Edinburgh Centre 

  

URBAN CENTRE 

  

1997 

  

3 

  



Edinburgh Centre 

  

URBAN CENTRE 

  

1998 

  

0 

  



Edinburgh Centre 

  

URBAN CENTRE 

  

1999 

  

2* 

  



Glasgow Centre 

  

URBAN CENTRE 

  

1997 

  

14 

  



Glasgow Centre 

  

URBAN CENTRE 

  

1998 

  

6 

  



Glasgow Centre 

  

URBAN CENTRE 

  

1999 

  

6* 

  



Glasgow Kerbside 

  

KERBSIDE 

  

1998 

  

64 

  



Glasgow Kerbside 

  

KERBSIDE 

  

1999 

  

28* 

  



  * Provisional

Finance

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether Glasgow gets a "fair deal" in terms of the allocation of resources.

Mr Jack McConnell: The budget of the Scottish Executive is allocated fairly across Scotland. Financial plans for 2000-01 include:

  £914 million allocated to Glasgow Health Board;

  £830 million local authority grant to Glasgow City Council;

  £51 million for Glasgow Development Agency;

  £45 million local authority gross non-housing capital allocation.

Fisheries

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether assistance under the infectious salmon anaemia re-start scheme is currently limited to a "de minimis" level of €100,000 cumulative over three years and, if so, what action it is taking to raise the limit so as to allow full payment of justified claims.

Mr John Home Robertson: The "de minimus" provisions referred to do not apply to aquaculture. HIE will be revising its guidance on the matter.

Health

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive to specify its efficiency savings target for each of the NHS Trusts in Glasgow this year and how it anticipates those savings will be achieved.

Susan Deacon: The Scottish Executive does not set specific efficiency savings targets for health boards or NHS Trusts. Boards and Trusts are expected to supplement the substantial real terms increase in resources they received this year by improving the efficiency with which they deliver services. All the savings generated in this way are re-invested locally in health service developments.

Health

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what advice it has recently provided to Fife Health Board on the most recent Business Plan submitted by the Fife Acute Services Trust for the reshaping of its services.

Susan Deacon: I refer Mr Crawford to the answer given on 27 January to his question S1O-996.

Health

Shona Robison (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to make a statement on the recent announcement by Professor David Nicholls of Dundee University that he and his team are to leave Scotland to continue his pioneering work into brain disorders in the United States.

Henry McLeish: The Scottish Executive has no plans to make a statement on this matter.

Health

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what savings have been made to the NHS dental budget in Scotland as a result of changes in dental charges in 1997-98, 1998-99 and 1999-2000 (projected).

Susan Deacon: None. Gross expenditure on general dental services continues to rise.

Higher Education

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what process is being used to determine the location of the headquarters for the Scottish University for Industry.

Henry McLeish: We will decide on a location for the Scottish University for Industry headquarters following a detailed option appraisal in the light of the business case. The option appraisal is being conducted by the Scottish Executive in collaboration with the Scottish UfI Development Team.

Higher Education

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Crichton Campus in Dumfries is one of the locations being considered for the headquarters of the Scottish University for Industry.

Henry McLeish: Detailed consideration is presently being given to a number of sites, including the Crichton Campus, to ensure a location that best meets the business requirements of the Scottish University for Industry is identified.

Higher Education

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the First Minister will use his visit to Crichton Campus in Dumfries on 21 January as an opportunity to consider its suitability as the location of the headquarters of the Scottish University for Industry.

Henry McLeish: Detailed consideration is being given to a number of potential sites including the Crichton Campus. The purpose of the First Minister’s visit on 21 January was to open officially the Crichton Campus which is a collaboration between the University of Glasgow, the University of Paisley, Bell College and Dumfries and Galloway College.

Housing

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to allow "opt outs" from the right to buy in order to allow social landlords in rural areas to retain houses which cannot be replaced by comparable accommodation.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Measures are already in place which allow local authorities in rural areas to have a specified area designated as a rural area and allow the landlord a "first option" to purchase a RTB property before it can be sold on to a third party.

  This measure applies also to houses for which a registered housing association was the landlord at 7 January 1987, as it does for council houses, although only a council can seek to have an area designated.

Joint Ministerial Committee

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many joint committees between itself and Her Majesty's Government are proposed; who their members and convenors will be; where and how often they will meet; what the remit of each committee will be, and whether they will deliberate in public.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Joint Ministerial Committee will bring together Ministers from the UK Government and the three devolved administrations. The remit and structure of the JMC are set out in Annex A of the Memorandum of Understanding.

  JMC (Poverty) covers issues on child poverty and pensioner poverty and JMC (Knowledge Economy) will consider joint action on information technology in education and industry. Both will be chaired by the Chancellor of the Exchequer. JMC (EU) covers European Union issues and will be chaired by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.

  Ministers of the devolved administrations and the territorial Secretaries of State will be members of the Committees as well as relevant UK Ministers. It will be for the Committee members to decide where and how often the Committees will meet.

  Paragraph A1.11 of the Memorandum of Understanding provides that "the proceedings of each meeting of the JMC will be regarded as confidential by the participants, in order to permit free and candid discussion. However, the holding of JMC meetings will be made known publicly and there may be occasions on which the Committee will wish to issue a public statement on the outcome of its discussions."

Justice

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2532 by Mr Jim Wallace on 29 November 1999, whether the creation of ten new permanent Shrieval posts will be sufficient to secure the proper discharge of administration of justice; in which courts they will be deployed, and whether it believes any delays resultant are consistent with the interests of justice.

Mr Jim Wallace: The holders of the ten new permanent Shrieval posts have Commissions as floating Sheriffs which means that they can serve where required throughout Scotland. My Department are in consultation with the Sheriffs Principal about the means of deploying the floating Sheriffs to best effect. I am discussing with Ministerial colleagues what additional steps may be needed as a result of the High Court judgement affecting the use of temporary Sheriffs and I shall keep Parliament informed of developments.

Local Government Finance

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why its announcement on spending figures for individual local authorities in 2000-01 was given in response to a written parliamentary question rather than in the Parliament.

Mr Jack McConnell: I announced the revised aggregate figures for this year’s local government finance settlement and the general approach I would be taking to the distribution in my statement to Parliament on 8 December. The proposals for individual allocations which I announced in my reply to a written parliamentary question (S1W-3294) on 15 December 1999 are still the subject of consultation with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities. The Parliament will have the opportunity to consider the final allocations when the Local Government Finance Order 2000 is laid later this month.

Local Government Finance

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why Glasgow City Council’s grant-aided expenditure and aggregate external finance figures for 2000-01 have increased by less than the local authority average percentage increase for that year.

Mr Jack McConnell: The distribution of grant-aided expenditure, which feeds into the distribution of aggregate external finance, is based on a formula assessment of councils’ relative expenditure needs agreed with CoSLA. Glasgow City Council’s below average increase in GAE this year was largely due to the continuing phasing in of revised social work GAE indicators and the normal redistributive effects on a number of other service assessments within the agreed formula approach.

Nursery Education

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding local authorities top slice from the £1,175 allocation per place in respect of nursery provision.

Peter Peacock: The rate of grant is negotiated between local authorities and private and voluntary providers concerned. We have recommended that within the £1,175 grant paid this year to local authorities per part-time place a minimum of £880 per place be paid on to their partners. Authorities are required to use any funds retained for the benefit of their partners and to account for this in annual reports to the Executive.

Police

Phil Gallie (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the numbers of police officers of all ranks in Scotland were in: (a) 1979; (b) 1997; (c) 1998, and (d) 1999.

Mr Jim Wallace: The information is shown in the table below.

 Rank   As at 31/12/79   As at 31/3/97   As at 31/3/98   As at 31/3/99 Chief Constable   8   8   8   8 Assistant Chief Constable   19   19   20   19 Chief Superintendent   70   N/A   N/A   N/A Superintendent   140   211   217   203 Chief Inspector   253   226   217   214 Inspector   659   722   738   750 Sergeant   1,949   2,072   2,078   2,066 Constable   10,116   11,531   11,702   11,550 Total   13,214   14,789   14,980   14,810   

  Until 31 December 1995 police strength figures by rank were collected at the end of each calendar year. Since 1996-97 they have been collected at the end of each financial year.

  From 1 April 1995 the rank of Chief Superintendent was abolished.

Social Inclusion

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2041 by Ms Wendy Alexander on 28 October 1999, whether it will provide an itemised breakdown of the revenue budget for each Social Inclusion Partnership.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Detailed breakdowns of revenue budgets for 1999-2000 are not held centrally. Further details of the revenue spending in 1998-99 by those Social Inclusion Partnerships converted from former Priority Partnership Areas and Regeneration Programmes are set out in their annual reports. Copies of the annual reports for 1998-99 have been placed in the Information Centre.

  We will shortly be issuing a new monitoring framework for Social Inclusion Partnerships. The new framework will require each Social Inclusion Partnership to submit a detailed breakdown of its revenue budget for the year ahead. This information will be available when annual reports for 1999-2000 are submitted in the summer of 2000.

Transport

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will include the three Ayrshire local authorities in the "consultation with other authorities in the Wider Area" in relation to the proposed M74 northern extension.

Sarah Boyack: As I made clear when announcing the conclusions of the Strategic Roads Review on 4 November, this road is to be promoted by the City of Glasgow and South Lanarkshire Councils. It will be for them to decide about consultation with neighbouring authorities.

Transport

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether implementing all of the proposals covered in the Strategic Roads Review would result in (a) more vehicle journeys and (b) longer average journeys.

Sarah Boyack: The information requested would only become available after detailed engineering design had been undertaken on all schemes considered in the Strategic Roads Review . This detailed work will, however, be confined to these schemes to be progressed.

Transport

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive by how much the Scottish Block Grant will be augmented in future years as a result of the statement made on 13 December 1999 by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions and, further to the answers to questions S1O-705 and S1O-764 by Donald Dewar on 25 November 1999 and 2 December 1999, whether it will now give a commitment to allocate fully any additional resources available to it as a result of extra transport expenditure in the UK to transport expenditure in Scotland.

Sarah Boyack: I understand that the statement by the Secretary of State for the Environment Transport and the Regions related to how he intended to use existing budgets. Future levels of expenditure in England will be determined in the forthcoming Spending Review now underway and any change for Scotland will be reflected in the Assigned Budget through the operation of the Barnett formula. We will decide at the appropriate time the allocation of that budget reflecting Scotland’s priorities. As to hypothecation of any future real terms increases in fuel duty to transport in Scotland, I refer Mr Tosh to the Finance Minister‘s answer to question S1W-3868.

Transport

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to promote light rail transport in Scotland.

Sarah Boyack: The development of local transport initiatives such as light rail is the responsibility of the relevant local authorities. They would have to be convinced that sufficient demand exists to justify the substantial investment required for projects such as an electric tram network or light railway scheme. Proposals from authorities would be eligible for support by the Executive under the Public Transport Fund.

Transport

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to make the Strategic Rail Authority a statutory consultee for local authorities and other planning bodies (a) when structure and local plans are being prepared and (b) when relevant planning applications are under consideration.

Sarah Boyack: The Executive has no plans to make specific statutory provision for the Strategic Rail Authority to be consulted in such circumstances.

  There are no specified statutory consultees in the development planning process. However, existing requirements on planning authorities to publicise their development planning activity and to consult appropriate authorities and bodies afford the Strategic Rail Authority adequate opportunity to make representations at the appropriate stages.

Transport

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will be able to require the Strategic Rail Authority to lay before the Scottish Parliament an annual report on its activities, its income and expenditure, and its existing and future strategies, in relation to rail services in Scotland, including those beginning and ending in Scotland.

Sarah Boyack: Under the Executive Devolution Order that came into effect on 1 July 1999 the Franchising Director is required to lay an annual report before the Scottish Parliament. Under the UK Transport Bill the Strategic Rail Authority will assume the functions of the Franchising Director. The Scottish Executive and the UK Government will consequently lay a new Executive Devolution Order to carry forward the function of laying the annual report.

Transport

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will have the right to nominate any members to the Board of the Strategic Rail Authority and whether there will be any representatives of Scottish passengers or rail freight users on the Board.

Sarah Boyack: Under proposals in the UK Transport Bill members of the Strategic Rail Authority will be appointed by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions in consultation with the Chairman of the Authority. The Deputy Prime Minister announced at the 1998 Labour Party Conference that there would be a Scottish representative on the SRA, and the Scottish Executive has been invited to put forward nominations.

Transport

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether money raised in fines on rail operations in Scotland is or will be retained by it or paid to the Shadow Strategic Rail Authority.

Sarah Boyack: The Franchising Director, part of the Shadow Strategic Rail Authority, operates a GB-wide Incentive Payment regime which rewards good performance by train operating companies and penalises poor performance. All penalty payments received by the Franchising Director are held by him to support his GB-wide expenditure. To date ScotRail is the single largest beneficiary of incentive payments. Last year alone the company’s good performance earned it over £6 million in incentive payments.

  Penalty income derived from enforcement procedures applied by the Rail Regulator and the Franchising Director under the Railways Act 1993 is paid into the UK Consolidated Fund.

Transport

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2268 by Sarah Boyack on 22 November 1999, which of the figures provided relate to the costs of work already carried out under the Trunk Road Cycling Initiative and whether or not the figures given are all attributable to cycling provision.

Sarah Boyack: All of the figures given were attributable to provision for cyclists. Those works already carried out are indicated below.

 Route   Project A1   Spott Road - Oswald Dean A1   Lemington - Howburn A701   Locharbriggs A701   Tinwald Downs Roundabout A701   Priory Roundabout A75   The Glen A76   Bowhouse Roundabout A76   Lochhill A76   Bargower A76   North of Bowhouse A76   Lowes A77   Maybole A77   Dutchhouse - Spitallhill A77   Whitletts Roundabout, Ayr A77   Holmston - Whitletts A77   Maybole - Girvan Cycle Route A77   Maybole A82   Longman Road A82   Kilbowie Road Clydebank A82/A9   Longman - Kessock Bridge A828   Creagan Bridge A86   Rubha na Magach - Aberarder A876   Kincardine Bridge A889   North of Dalwhinnie A9   Slochd A9   Drumochter (County Boundary - Dalwhinnie) A9   Birnam Station Link A9   Birnam Junction A9   Slochd Phase 1 A9   Kessock - Tore A9   Logie Easter A9   North Kessock A90   Longforgan A90   Anderson Drive Aberdeen A90   Peterhead A96   Raigmore - Seafield A96   Blackburn - Kintore A96   Trades Park Nairn A96   Fochabers A96   Forres - Kinloss A96   Forres - Tarras A96   Auchmill Rd Aberdeen M74   Uddingston M74   Spindlehowe Underpass M77   Nithsdale Road M77   Ayr Road Route M8   Kinning Park M8   Easter Inch M8/M9   Newbridge M90   Halbeath-Crossgates Roundabout M74   Millbank to Kirkpatrick Fleming

Transport

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2268 by Sarah Boyack on 22 November 1999, to provide a detailed breakdown of the £138,480 costs involved in providing cycling facilities for the Parkhead to J13 Abington section of the M74.

Sarah Boyack: This section was procured within the M74/A74(M) Design, Build, Finance & Operate Contract and a detailed cost breakdown is not available. The value of the scheme is based on securing 10.215km of cycleway at an estimated rate of £13.56 per metre length.

Transport

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2268 by Sarah Boyack on 22 November 1999, to provide a detailed breakdown of the £1,057,500 costs involved in providing cycling facilities for the Harthope Viaduct to Coatsgate section of the M74.

Sarah Boyack: This section was procured within the M74/A74M Design, Build, Finance & Operate Contract and a detailed cost breakdown is not available. The value of the scheme is based on securing 9km of cycleway at an estimated rate of £117.50 per metre length.

Transport

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2268 by Sarah Boyack on 22 November 1999, to provide a detailed breakdown of the £88,000 costs of providing cycling facilities on the Bargower section of the A76 and the £99,000 costs of providing cycling facilities on the North of Bowhouse section of the A76.

Sarah Boyack: In each case, consideration of cyclists' needs resulted in the provision of hardstrips in larger improvement contracts. On the Bargower section of the A76, the installation of edge of carriageway hardstrips cost £88,000. On the North of Bowhouse section of the A76 the installation of edge of carriageway hardstrips cost £99,000.

Transport

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2268 by Sarah Boyack on 22 November 1999, to provide a detailed breakdown of the £450,000 costs involved in providing cycling facilities for the Ayr Road Route of the M77.

Sarah Boyack: The detailed breakdown of the £450,000 cost involved in providing cycling facilities for the Ayr Road Route of the M77 is as follows:

 1   Corkerhill Pedestrian/Cycle Bridge   £155,000 2   Arden/Darnley Pedestrian/Cycle Bridge   £155,000 3   Nithsdale Road/Drumbeck Road remote pedestrian/cycle track.   £19,250 4   Corkerhill/White Cart remote pedestrian/cycle track.   £49,700 5   Arden/Darnley remote pedestrian/cycle track   £56,000 6   Lighting   £15,000

Transport

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2268 by Sarah Boyack on 22 November 1999, what further cycling facilities attached to trunk roads are planned.

Sarah Boyack: Those improvements for which plans have been made are contained in the list which I published in answer to your question S1W-2268 on 22 November 1999.

Transport

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make a statement on the progress of the Trunk Roads Cycling Initiative.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive is progressing the Trunk Roads Cycling Initiative in a number of areas. It is continuing to promote the portfolio of schemes listed in my answer of 22 November 1999 (S1W-2268) including major sections of the Sustrans National Cycle Network in the A9 corridor. The dedicated cycle route running parallel to the M74/A74(M) motorway is almost complete. The remaining section to which we have contributed is to be provided on local roads south of Kirkpatrick Fleming. Some work has been completed redetermining suitable sections of trunk road footway to permit use by cyclists and our interest in this area continues. Advice on the provision for cyclists within new trunk road schemes has been included in the technical consultation document, Cycling by Design which I published in December 1999.

Transport

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will direct and advise the Strategic Rail Authority that the franchise for the East Coast line must include a contract to electrify the section from Edinburgh to Aberdeen within a reasonable timescale.

Sarah Boyack: Under the terms of the devolution settlement for railways announced on 31 March 1998, the Scottish Ministers will be able to issue guidance to the Strategic Rail Authority for daytime cross-border passenger rail services. This may cover matters such as frequency and journey times but not infrastructure as such. It is then for the train operating company and Railtrack to ensure the availability of the necessary infrastructure to meet the terms of the franchise.

Water

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive when the Scottish Environment Protection Agency will be granted powers to license water abstraction in Scotland.

Sarah Boyack: Under section 17 of the Natural Heritage (Scotland) Act 1991, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency may issue licences for the abstraction of water for irrigation from inland or ground waters in an area to which a control order applies under section 15 of that Act. We expect to develop future abstraction control policy in the light of the proposed EC Water Framework Directive which is presently before the European Parliament.